Powdersville residents to pay more for sewer

Powdersville – Years after Anderson County agreed to help the fledgling Powdersville area start building their wastewater system, the time has come to pay the piper. Beginning next month, the approximately 350 sewer customers in the Powdersville area will pay almost two dollars more per month, per thousand gallons, for sewer service.

Derrick Singleton, Anderson County’s wastewater manager, explained that back in the early 1980s, the County agreed to help a few potential customers start up a sewer treatment system. “There were never really any fees put in place,” said Singleton.

Approximately thirty years later, the county has fourteen pump stations and approximately thirty miles of sewer lines in place, and still receives no revenue from the customers in one of the Upstate’s fastest growing areas. “It costs us approximately $120,000 per year to maintain and operate those lines, and ReWa gets all the revenue for accepting and treating the wastewater,” said Singleton. “The County gets nothing, as of this time.”

Under the current arrangement, ReWa charges approximately $5 per thousand gallons accepted and treated. The new fee structure will bring that figure to $6.95 per thousand gallons, the same rate charged to all other customers connected to the county system.

Singleton explains that the pump stations and the lines are beginning to age and require more attention. “The point of this fee is to give us a chance to build up some cash reserves so that when repairs and upgrades are needed, we will be ready. As everyone knows, Powdersville is a growing community and more and more customers are seeking service. We simply can’t meet those needs without revenue coming in.”